A striking feature of the book is the way in which every word of God is contradicted or questioned by his people. God’s persistence in speaking to them is a clear picture of sin and grace in close proximity.

Furthermore, God’s people neither served him enthusiastically nor turned away in blatant disobedience. This was not neutral territory, but a dangerous whirlpool of self-deception.

Peter Adam’s valuable exposition shows how Malachi is God’s effective remedy for such a situation. The greatest sin of God’s people is the sin against God – the source of all sin against ourselves and others; and at the heart of God’s people, the church, must lie a deep, overwhelming conviction that God loves them.